...
By Gabe Whisnant
News Editor
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday at the World Economic Forum that "sometimes you need a dictator" while addressing the CEO Reception and Dinner at the Davos, Switzerland event.
While reflecting on his speech earlier in the day, Trump said, “I can’t believe it, we got good reviews on that speech. Usually they say, ‘He’s a horrible dictator type person. I’m a dictator.' But sometimes you need a dictator. But they didn’t say that in this case.… It’s all based on common sense, it’s not conservative or liberal, or anything else.”
Earlier in the day, Trump used his WEF speech in the Swiss Alps to focus on his pursuit of Greenland and threatened to upend NATO, an alliance that has been among the globe's most unshakable since the early days of the Cold War.
Read More on News
In his address, Trump said he was asking for territory that was “cold and poorly located" and that the U.S. had effectively saved Europe during World War II while declaring of NATO: “It’s a very small ask compared to what we have given them for many, many decades.”
“We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be frankly unstoppable. But I won’t do that, OK?” Trump said.
Later on Wednesday, the president backed away from threatened tariffs on eight European countries that he had tied to demands for U.S. control of Greenland, a sharp reversal that came shortly after he said he wanted the island “including right, title and ownership.”
In a post on his social media platform, Trump said he had reached agreement with NATO’s secretary-general on what he described as a “framework of a future deal” focused on Arctic security, a move that appeared to ease tensions with U.S. allies and avert a dispute with broad geopolitical implications.
Trump's History of 'Dictator' Remarks
Trump has previously made similar remarks.
Last August, facing criticism over his hardline actions in Washington, D.C., President Trump pushed back, saying, "A lot of people are saying, 'Maybe we like a dictator.'"
"I'm not a dictator. I'm a man with great common sense," he insisted immediately after.
During a November 2025 meeting with then-New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani at the White House, Trump laughed off past descriptions of him as a “despot” and a “fascist."
When a reporter pressed Mamdani about calling Trump a despot, the president interjected with a grin:
“I’ve been called much worse than a despot. So it’s not that insulting.”
Moments later, as Mamdani began explaining their political differences after previously referring to Trump as a fascist, Trump cut in again, smiling and patting him on the arm: “That’s OK, you can just say it — I don’t mind.”
...
What People Are Saying
Democratic Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut told MSNOW on Wednesday: "We're supposed to have checks and balances, right? This Congress has not existed for a year. 90% of Republicans are absolutely sound asleep…The United States has a dictator because Congress is asleep."
Conservative commentator Eric Daugherty posted on X, while quoting Trump: "WOW, President Trump is about to throw the left into MAJOR meltdown mode!"
Updates: 1/21/26, 6:53 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines